GROG not think "Damn!" is completely dead. You hear F&*K , SH*T, CRAP, and Son-of-a-bitch used more often nowadays, but some old-school cussers like GROG still use "Damn!". Now, the word "agonarch", meaning "judge of a contest or activity", it's probably considered dead. You never hear it used anymore.

Taking a moment now to remember all the dogs I have thus far had in my life and look forward to seeing on the other side. Life is not complete for me unless I have a dog.

- FiFi - My first dog and wonderful friend, a toy black Pekinese, we lived on Rosecrans street and every day after school and on the weekends, FiFi and I walked up to the end of the block and sat on the corner by the street sign. Never needed a leash, she was my shadow and much loved. Died of kidney failure. RIP FiFi, you were such a beautiful dog and wonderful friend.

- Ginga - The only puppy of FiFi's that lived, a cute red Pekinese that moved with us to the country. She too was my little shadow, and she would walk around with me in the cow pen and the horse corral and they never stepped on her. She passed on in her sleep one day. RIP Ginga, I miss you.

- Rex - He was a silver and black German Shepard that the real estate lady gave my sister but he was the family dog when we moved to the country. He was a good watch dog but was plagued by the fear of explosive sounds. He used to run around in the river bed and get poison oak on his fur and then my Dad would get it from Rex all over his wrists, never a good thing. RIP Rex & Dad. Rex died of old age. My Dad died of prostrate cancer...miss him much.

- Mike - Beautiful tri-colored Collie that did not qualify as a show dog as one of his ears stood straight up. He was given to our family and he was my pal and would get into dog fights that he and Rex picked on neighbor dogs. Some kids called him across the road one day and a jerk hit him and kept going. Sheared off one of Mike's back legs, we put him in the back of my Thunderbird and I drove like a bat out of hell to the Vets...but we put him down, he loved running up and down the mountains with me...RIP

- Toby - Had moved away from home and came back for a while where I inherited this black and brown Lab/Shepard mix. He was a goofy guy, he loved the smell of skunks and would kill them and place them outside my bedroom window...delightful. Apparently he liked chasing the goats next door so that neighbor (may he forever rot in hell) blew a cannon sized hole in Toby's side with his shotgun and Toby died running back home. RIP Toby, I hope you are still rousting up those goats and skunks.

- Thor - A rescue black and brown German Shepard. First dog me and the hubby had...but don't think the hubby was much of a dog lover (red flag). Thor also had issues with explosive sounds. He got a cancer on his foot so had to put him down. He had never been to the vet in his life, so they had to put a muzzle on him to start his IV...when they injected him and he started fading I screamed get the muzzle off so I could hold his head and kiss him...that one was rough. RIP Thor, you were a wild one.

- Shane - We were given a tri-colored Collie and he was such a wonderful dog...friend to Thor and my husband actually liked him. Collies are funny as when they play with you they like to herd you. He used to run our back fence and herd the kids on the other side. When Thor passed on, we had to get another dog for him to have as a friend. When I got a divorce, the ex came to the house to get his stuff when I was gone and left the gate open, never got Shane back...painful.

- Ming - Rescue, a small black Belgian Sheepdog...she was a bundle of joy and had lots of fun with Shane. I used to have a parrot and whenever I would let Ming in the house for a visit she would run to the cage and hoover up any spilled bird seed on the carpet. She had escaped out the open gate with Shane but was found. She passed away of old age. RIP...Mingy, I miss you.

- Nik - Golden Retriever given to me by a friend. Good match to Ming, they became good play mates. He was a fun dog and helped me through my divorce...bless his little ears. When Ming passed on, I had to get another friend for him. Nik got cancer and had to be put down. Love you Nik...RIP.

- CoCo - Always wanted a Chow and CoCo proved to be the quintessential Chow with the fabulous hair and standoffish personality. At one point in time she beat Nik up because she was jealous of me petting him. Had to be careful after that so that she would not be mean. After Nik passed she was happy to be by herself. She would only be friends with me and my next door neighbor (an older man) who took care of her when I went on vacations. She was thrilled when I moved into my new home as she had a fence she could see through. All of my dogs are outside dogs, but as CoCo got older, she liked to come in the house and lay in the Tiki lounge when my friends came over on the weekends to play cards. She even became friends with my Mom when she would come to visit me. As she got older she would snore a lot and we used to laugh about it. It finally got so bad I took her to the vet and she had a huge tumor in her throat...I took a week off of work and CoCo and I did lots of things together and rode all over and I treated her to fast food burgers which she loved...it was hard putting her down, but as all my dogs have gone, she was in my arms as she left this world. RIP

- Kato & MiMi - Brother and sister Golden Retrievers, had them since puppies...they are such a delight. Not well trained though so they are not allowed in the house. They have a dog walker and help everyone that comes in the backyard. My Mom is using lion taming skills on them and they don't jump up on her when she goes outside to feed them or work in the yard. Very much alive right now. I love my doggies!!!